• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to header navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

RecipeTin Eats

Fast Prep, Big Flavours

Small book

My cookbook "Dinner" now available!

  • My RecipeTin
  • My cookbook!
  • Recipes
  • Recipes By Category
    • Christmas ⭐️
      • Starters
      • Mains
      • Sides: Warm & Hearty
      • Sides: Light & Fresh
      • Desserts
      • Breads
      • Christmas Leftovers
    • Iconic + cult classics
    • Mains
      • Chicken
        • Chicken mince
      • Beef Recipes
        • Ground Beef (Mince)
      • Pork
      • Lamb
      • Turkey
      • Shrimp / Prawns
      • Salmon
      • Fish recipes
      • Salad Meals
    • Quick and Easy
    • Soups
    • One Pot
    • Stews
    • Slow Cooker
    • Sides
      • All
      • Salads & veg
      • Show Off Salads
      • Rice (all)
      • Fried rice recipes
      • Rice (plain)
      • Potato
    • Pasta
      • All
      • Pasta bakes
      • Pasta salads
    • Sweet
      • Cakes
      • Candy
      • Cheesecakes
      • Cupcakes & Muffins
      • Cookies
      • Puddings & Cosy Desserts
      • Bite Size
      • Pies
      • Slices & Bars
      • Frosting & Icing
      • Ice cream
    • Cuisine
      • Asian
        • All
        • Stir fries
        • Noodles
        • Soups
        • Chinese
        • Japanese
        • Korean
        • Thai
        • Vietnamese
      • French
      • Greek
      • Indian
      • Italian
      • Mediterranean
      • Mexican
      • Middle Eastern
      • South American
    • Dietary
      • Gluten Free
      • Low Calorie
      • Vegetarian
    • Other Categories
      • BBQ
      • Breakfast
      • Burgers
      • Cocktails
      • Party Foods
      • Rice Recipes
      • Roasts
      • Sandwiches & Sliders
    • Cookbook recipes
  • Collections
  • About
    • Me
    • RecipeTin Meals
    • Free Recipe Books
    • Contact
    • Nitty Gritty
      • Policy: Use of Recipes & Images
      • Privacy & Disclosure
Home Candy

Rocky Road

By:Nagi
Published:25 Aug '23Updated:30 Aug '23
196 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

I love a good Rocky Road. I love the heftiness and endless versatility. Though, unsurprisingly, I have views on what makes a good one! Ratios matter. So here’s my Rocky Road recipe. It’s easy. And it’s oh-so-good.

Stack of Rocky Road

Rocky Road opinions

Rocky Road is about as simple as candy recipes get. Melt chocolate. Stir in add-ins of choice. Marshmallows, raspberries and peanuts are classic. Coconut is my must-have extra.

In other countries around the world (I’m in Australia, BTW!), cookies and dried fruit are common. And I’ve seen glacé cherries instead of raspberries.

No judgement. Rocky Road is a recipe to make your own!

The only firm view I have is to make sure there is enough add-ins. Rocky Road has heft to it, it’s not a thin, wimpy piece of candy. It’s a thick slab. Nobody wants to bite into an enormous block of plain chocolate. We want to sink our teeth into a delightful medley of textures – soft marshmallow, chewy raspberry, nutty crunch of peanuts.

So don’t skimp on add-ins!!

Making Rocky Road

Rocky road photo

What you need for Rocky Road

Here’s what you need to make my Rocky Road.

Chocolate – EASY OPTION

Use chips or melts for an easy option. Upgrade to block chocolate for premium. I use a combination of dark and milk chocolate to get the best of both worlds: chocolate flavour intensity plus creaminess of milk chocolate!

Rocky Road ingredients
50/50 dark and milk chocolate chips or melts are my easy option that I use most frequently.

Chocolate melts and chips are the easy option because there’s no chopping involved and they are made for easy melting. Equal amounts of both dark (US: semi-sweet) and milk chocolate is my favourite. You get the best of each type of chocolate: good chocolate flavour from the dark chocolate plus the creaminess of milk chocolate.

But feel free to use the combination you want!

PREMIUM CHOCOLATE

If you want to upgrade, for example, if you’re gifting or making to impress, use block chocolate instead. Lindt is my premium pick before moving into couverture (higher grade chocolate used by fine patisseries, chocolatiers etc), for flavour, quality and also it’s shiny because it’s tempered.

Plaistowe is probably the “best” in the baking aisle followed by Cadbury. And a couple of good US brands: Ghirardelli and Baker’s brand.

Best chocolate for Rocky Road

As with the chips, I will typically use a combination of dark and milk chocolate though if using Lindt, I usually stick with just one type. For the sake of purity! 70% for grown ups, milk chocolate for all-rounder crowd pleaser.

If using chocolate block, you’ll need to chop it up before melting. The finer you chop, the easier it melts.

Note: Lindt is not cheap and you need 5 blocks. I stock up when they are steeply discounted. It happens every now and then!

Making Rocky Road

⚠️ Eating vs cooking chocolate

Whatever chocolate you choose, it is safest to source the chocolate from the baking aisle which is made for melting and cooking. Some chocolate from the confectionary aisle (ie for eating) is actually made to prevent it melting easily if, say, it’s sitting in a warm pantry, your car or handbag.. So they will not necessarily melt smoothly. They are also more prone to problems like seizing and burning if you use the microwave rather than a bain-marie (bowl over simmering water).

It’s not the end of the world for Rocky Road because we re-set the chocolate anyway, but it’d be highly risky to use in things like Chocolate Mousse. So if you know of eating chocolate brands that melt perfectly / you’ve nailed the art of melting Cadbury Milk Chocolate blocks, feel free to use it! But just be aware that chocolate from the baking aisle is safer for use in cooking!

The only exception is Lindt. This can be sourced from the chocolate confectionary aisle. It melts 100% perfectly. And did you know Lindt is already tempered so it’s natural shiny? Lindt is special! 🙂

Making Rocky Road
Making Rocky Road

rocky road add-ins

And for the add-ins! Here’s what goes in mine. Classic Aussie Rocky Road – marshmallows, chewy raspberries and peanuts. Plus coconut. Reminiscent of retro Golden Rough (chocolate coconut candy here in Australia). Coconut isn’t always present in Rocky Road, but for me it’s a must!

Rocky Road ingredients

How to make Rocky Road

Hot contender for the world’s easiest candy recipe!

How to make Rocky Road
  1. Melt chocolate in 30 second bursts, stirring in between.

  2. Stir until smooth. (Hot tip – use a chopstick during the initial stirring phases. Easier – and less surface area for chocolate to stick to. Switch to rubber spatula towards the end).

How to make Rocky Road
  1. Stir through add-ins.

  2. Spread in a 20cm/8″ paper lined square pan.

  3. Refrigerate for 3 hours (or overnight, or days!) until fully firm.

  4. Cut – Remove from the fridge 30 minutes prior to cutting into pieces. I cut into 5 bars, then into smaller pieces if serving to eat, and larger pieces if gifting.

Rocky Road slices

Rocky Road food gift

Tell me your Gold Standard Rocky Road!

Thinking back, I’m pretty sure that the vast majority of the time I make Rocky Road is for gifting. Which is not surprising. Rocky Road is a sizeable piece of candy. There’s no such thing as a small nibble. Even breaking off a “small” hunk is a decent mouthful! Unlike, for example, my current favourite small-form candy to have around the house which allows me to take a small guilt-free nibble when the craving hits. (Never mind that I go back to the jar 10 times a day).

What about you? Is Rocky Road a gifting recipe? For parties? Or are you a committed candy monster who will make this for yourself?

But more importantly – SHARE YOUR GOLD STANDARD ROCKY ROAD add-ins!! I bet you make a killer Rocky Road! – Nagi x


Watch how to make it

Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.

Stack of Rocky Road

Rocky Road

Author: Nagi
Prep: 15 minutes mins
Chilling: 3 hours hrs
Total: 3 hours hrs 15 minutes mins
Candy
Australian, Western
4.93 from 27 votes
Servings12
Tap or hover to scale
Print
Recipe video above. I love a good Rocky Road. I love the heftiness and endless versatility of add-ins. Though, unsurprisingly, I have views on what makes a good one! Ratios matter. Too much chocolate and not enough add-ins is not good! So here's my Rocky Road recipe. Super easy. 🙂
Use chips or melts for an easy option. Upgrade to Lindt for premium. Excellent food gift. Think – Christmas, birthdays, thank you, get well present.

Ingredients

Chocolate (read Note 1!):

  • 225 – 250g / 8 oz dark chocolate melts or chips (1 1/2 cups) or block, chopped (US: semi-sweet chips)
  • 225 – 250g / 8 oz milk chocolate melts or chips (1 1/2 cups) or block, chopped (or more dark choc)
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil or any plain flavoured oil (prevents cracking, adds bit of sheen, Note 2)

Nagi’s Rocky Road Add-ins (Note 3):

  • 3 cups marshmallows, pink and white , most cut in half (firmly pack the cups!)
  • 3/4 cup raspberry lollies , halved
  • 1/3 cup desiccated coconut (or flakes), unsweetened
  • 1/2 cup unsalted peanuts , very roughly chopped (ie almost just halved)

Instructions

  • Line a 20cm/8" square pan with baking paper (parchment paper).
  • Melt chocolate – Place chocolate and oil in a bowl. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until melted and smooth.
  • Add-ins – Stir the Add-ins into the chocolate. Pour into pan, spreading out evenly.
  • Refrigerate for 3 hours or until fully cool.
  • Cut – Remove from the fridge 30 minutes prior to cutting. I cut into 5 lines, then into hunks for eating or larger pieces for gifting!

Recipe Notes:

1. Chocolate options – using melts or chips is the easiest. No chop, and made for easy melting! Dark and milk chocolate combo is my favourite. Cadbury bags are 225g hence the amount.
Premium upgrade to block: Lindt (best before getting into couverture), Plaistowe, and a couple of good US brands: Ghirardelli and Baker’s brand. 70% cocoa for grown-ups, or 50/50 combo of milk and dark. Finely chop with knife then melt. More info in post!
Whatever you choose, it is safest to source the chocolate from the baking aisle which is designed for melting/cooking. Not all chocolate from the confectionary aisle (ie eating chocolate) will melt smoothly or easily, and some are prone to seizing / burning unless using a bain-marie. (Read blue block in post for more info!). But if you have used eating chocolate before and know brands that melt fine, by all means go ahead!
2. Oil – insurance policy to prevent cracking when cutting, and adds a bit of shininess to the chocolate.
3. These are my classic add-ins. Coconut is essential! Reminiscent of Golden Rough, a retro favourite. But…. you can use whatever you want. 🙂 Biscuits, any other nuts, dried fruit, glace cherries. Add as much as you want as long as there is enough chocolate to coat everything.
PS I usually don’t bother cutting the raspberries and marshmallows in half. But when gifting, I do. Just better dispersement.
4. Keeps for weeks and weeks! Refrigerate if hot where you are.
Nutrition per serving, assuming 12 servings.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 387cal (19%)Carbohydrates: 47g (16%)Protein: 4g (8%)Fat: 21g (32%)Saturated Fat: 12g (75%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.03gCholesterol: 2mg (1%)Sodium: 20mg (1%)Potassium: 265mg (8%)Fiber: 4g (17%)Sugar: 34g (38%)Vitamin A: 19IUVitamin C: 0.04mgCalcium: 28mg (3%)Iron: 3mg (17%)
Keywords: rocky road, rocky road recipe
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.

Life of Dozer

Back to the vet for another check up with ongoing tummy issues. 😢 Clearly he’s gotten into something he shouldn’t have – again! It’s been over a week now, so I’m a little worried so I took him to the vet again. He’s had various blood tests and all have come back clear.

Here he is, wondering if the bandage is edible (the bandage was for the blood test patch).

For now he’s on a strict gastro-intestinal dog food diet. No treats, no taste testing, not even a drizzle of canned fish juices to make the dry food more interesting.

He’s so unimpressed with this new diet! Hopefully it won’t be for too long and he’ll bounce back to his normal self.

Previous Post
Spicy Asian Zucchini
Next Post
Vietnamese Caramel Ginger Chicken

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

Read More

Free Recipe eBooks

Join my free email list to receive THREE free cookbooks!

Related Posts

Golden Gaytime popcorn - copycat recipe in a bowl

Golden Gaytime popcorn (copycat)

Bowl of Christmas Popcorn Candy

Christmas Popcorn Candy

Scooping Slightly sweet and salty butter popcorn into popcorn holder

Lightly Sweet ‘n Salty CRISPY Butter Popcorn

More Candy

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Cooked this? Rate this recipe!




196 Comments

  1. Jenny stokes says

    December 9, 2023 at 6:01 pm

    5 stars
    Yet another fabulous recipe. Forgot the coconut (sorry Nagi) but you would never know. Yum yum, another wee treat for the Xmas parcels. Maybe a few pieces left for us🤣🤣

    Reply
  2. Colleen Tito says

    December 7, 2023 at 2:26 pm

    5 stars
    What a winner!!!So easy and my family love it, Thanks Nagi

    Reply
  3. Helen says

    December 7, 2023 at 10:21 am

    My go to recipe adds a cup of peanut paste to the chocolate mix. Heaven !

    Reply
  4. Siobhan says

    December 6, 2023 at 1:25 pm

    How many packets of marshmallows are needed !?

    Reply
    • Jenny stokes says

      December 9, 2023 at 6:02 pm

      5 stars
      I used 3/4 of a large packet.

      Reply
  5. Anna says

    November 24, 2023 at 1:14 pm

    5 stars
    I made a Christmas version of this using white choc, freeze dried strawbs and pistachios. Looks amazing but is probably a bit too sweet!

    Reply
  6. Lois DJ says

    October 24, 2023 at 5:48 am

    5 stars
    Great recipe. My husband loves it!

    Reply
  7. Suzi Lloyd says

    October 17, 2023 at 6:40 pm

    5 stars
    I can’t remember if I’ve commented on this one before but I make this pretty much once a month to take to work for my colleagues – everyone loves it! And it’s sooo easy! Thanks Nagi 🙂

    Reply
  8. Marie says

    October 4, 2023 at 3:44 pm

    5 stars
    We took our grandsons aged 9 and 10 to a chocolate-making course today and they both announced that “our home-made” rocky road is the best. They make it using Nagi’s recipe. The small boys are most discerning and I must say that I agree with them.

    Reply
  9. Sabrina Mooney says

    September 24, 2023 at 3:10 pm

    5 stars
    I added toasted coconut marshmallows (from Aldi) – delicious! Thank you!

    Reply
  10. Grant says

    September 13, 2023 at 10:36 pm

    My new go-to for gifts – everyone loves it. Thanks a million Nagi xx

    Reply
  11. Joanne Gabbe says

    September 12, 2023 at 8:31 am

    5 stars
    The best Rocky Road I have tasted! (use Lindt!)

    Reply
  12. Sparrow says

    September 10, 2023 at 10:18 am

    Absolutely love this recipe! My partner doesn’t like Rocky Road but I think he’s eaten more than me!

    Reply
  13. Susan says

    September 8, 2023 at 8:12 am

    I made this for my husband AND my dad for Fathers Day and they both said it was the best rocky road they have tasted. I removed the coconut and added broken up Digestive biscuits and it was PERFECT! Thank you.

    Reply
  14. adriannawb says

    September 6, 2023 at 11:59 pm

    I am excited to try it!

    Reply
  15. Susan Mercurio says

    September 6, 2023 at 9:58 am

    We don’t have raspberry lollies in the US.

    Reply
    • Anita Harris says

      September 12, 2023 at 1:41 am

      I thought they were either chopped-up lollipops (hard candy) or dried raspberries. GOOGLE brought me to Allen’s brand, which looked just like Deb’s description of raspberry-shaped gummies.

      Reply
    • Deb says

      September 8, 2023 at 7:35 pm

      After googling them, I think they are just gummy candies. So use whatever you want, like chopped gummy worms 😉

      Reply
      • Eva says

        December 9, 2023 at 9:36 am

        Gummies (eg gummie bears) have a different texture to Allen’s raspberries. Gummies are stiffer/chewier and have less flavour. These lollies are stretchier and have a stronger raspberry extract flavour.
        NB They also are not like twizzlers – which I find waxy and oddly tasteless too!

        Reply
  16. Anthony says

    September 5, 2023 at 5:39 pm

    5 stars
    I made this and it was as good as Haighs!!

    Thank you!

    Reply
  17. Allison says

    September 2, 2023 at 2:35 pm

    I add Clinkers to ours – cut into 3 so no-one breaks their teeth!

    Reply
  18. Rebecca says

    September 2, 2023 at 10:20 am

    Thank you everyone. Well, being in the US I did some searching and basically came up with raspberry/blackberry gummies. Even Jelly Belly has them. But, I’m thinking a gumdrop may be a better choice, if they come in raspberry!

    Reply
    • Anthony Brown says

      September 5, 2023 at 5:40 pm

      Try glazed cherries. You might call them candied cherries. Delicious!

      Reply
  19. Kerryn says

    September 1, 2023 at 7:29 am

    Dammit Nagi, I used to hate Rocky Road due to the goddamn awful cherries. You had to go and muck it up by changing to raspberries didn’t you… Bloody Genius! Now I can’t stop eating the damn stuff! My hips dislike you right now! 😂

    Reply
  20. Rebecca says

    August 31, 2023 at 7:07 pm

    What is a raspberry Lolly please? I’m in the US. Search comes up with popsicles and lollipops!

    Reply
    • Kathryn says

      September 2, 2023 at 9:46 am

      A lolly in this part of the world would be candy (or sweets) in the US. I think you have a candy called a raspberry Twizzler? That might work if it’s soft? You want something that’s jelly/jube like.

      Reply
Older Comments

Primary Sidebar

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

Free Recipe eBooks

Join my free email list to receive THREE free cookbooks!

Meet Dozer

Official taste tester of RecipeTin Eats! Meet Dozer
As Featured On
  • Goodfood
  • Food Network
  • Better Homes Gardens
  • Taste
  • Nine
  • Network 10
  • BuzzFeed
  • Daily Telegraph
  • Women's Day

Never miss a recipe!

Subscribe to my newsletter and receive 3 FREE ebooks!

Subscribe
Recipes
  • All Recipes
  • By Category
  • Collections
About
  • About Nagi
  • About Dozer
  • RecipeTin Meals
Related
  • RecipeTin Japan
  • Food Bloggers Central
Help
  • Contact
  • Image Use Policy
© RecipeTin Eats 2023
  • Privacy Policy & Terms
Site Credits
Maintained by Zao Designed by Melissa Rose Design Developed by Once Coupled
All Rights Reserved

Subscribe to my newsletter

Sign up and receive 3 FREE EBOOKS!